Kill The Deceiver
by DemonFoxBK201
Summary: Tatsumi is an assassin loyal only to Esdeath. An undercover mission brings him to Night Raid, where he acts like an innocent country bumpkin. With a Teigu of his own along with Esdeath's ice powers, he will prove to be a hard target should his cover be blown.
1. Four Years Before

**I will update We Will Prevail soon enough, but when I got on this thought there was no going off. This is just a prologue so I will try to make the chapters longer, but I'm not so good at it.**

 **OwO**

 ** _Prologue_**

It was cold.

In a small stone room, the only comforts being an old stone bed and a small book-filled shelf, metal bars blocked the inhabitant from the outside. If you looked closely, in the little light provided by a small window near the ceiling, you would be able to see cracks or small clumps of moss scattered along the door. Snow occasionally blew in through the window, making the room even more miserable.

The room was a prison cell. It wasn't very well taken care of, but it was a fact that this was a high security prison.

Why you ask? It was simple:

The Empire's strongest army guarded the prison here. From people of both inside and out. Rumors had it the supposed "Empire's Strongest" was stationed here as well.

The only unusual thing, with the high-level guards and high-level criminals, was this lonely cell's inhabitant. There were no other cells near this one, and guarding it were high-ranking soldiers of the Army.

You would think a mass-murder that got a lucky shot and killed the Emperor was being held here, or something similar right?

Well, your wrong. No big bad guy sharpening his teeth. No bald guy covered in tattoos with an eyepatch. No guy with a crazed look in his eye. Or whatever you think of your typical villain.

Inside, there was a boy. With tufts of brown hair and forest green eyes, he looked like your ordinary village-kid. He couldn't even be older than twelve. But what he did was set in stone, or so he thought.

He, possessing a powerful Teigu, raided the palace at its weakest, aiming for the Prime Ministers's life.

The Prime Minister, put simply, was a demon. He controlled the child Emperor like a puppet, only to get what he wants. First he acted as a caring old man, gaining the previous Emperor's trust. Unfortunately, after an "accident" the Emperor passed away, leaving his child to rule. The Prime Minister himself is responsible for the heavy corruption in the Empire.

This boy, a victim to the corruption, was aiming to end the citizens suffering and take revenge at the same time. However one small mistake had him end up in this prison. The best in the Capital.

Hearing footsteps echo upon the stone walls, the boy looked up. He had splatters of blood on him, head to toe, with dead eyes.

His eyes followed a shadowed figure, curious of its purpose. The shadow stepped into the weak light, revealing icy beauty. With a wave of her hand the three guards were dismissed.

Sky blue hair fell down to her waist, and matching cold eyes stared into his soul. She was tall, yes, but was very young. She was a general, if you took a glance at her white uniform, but hadn't even reached her twenties yet. She was perhaps eighteen, or so. A tattoo located right under her collarbones looked vaguely like a 'Y'. A triumphant smirk was plastered on her face. He looked down to the floor, curiosity sated.

She looked down at the boy, "Kid, what is your name?"

He briefly looked up before looking back to the ground. "Tatsumi." Voice hoarse from lack of use, he answered her without purpose.

The woman still smiled, as if expecting a simple answer, "Tatsumi you tried to kill the Prime Minister, correct? Why?"

The boy looked up but this time stared her down, "That bastard killed everyone in the village, their screams... He was in utter delight!" A dead voice, yet trying to have her see his reasoning.

"He is very much a bastard, but listen will you?" He looked up.

"This is a harsh world. In it, there is one rule that beats all others." She leaned down a bit to emphasize. "The strong survive, and the weak die. There is no other purpose in life than to survive for the strong. For the weak you can only die, when the strong come to conquer." She smiled. "That is what happened to you and your village. They were weak."

She stood back up seeing his deflated look. This boy believed her every word. But she liked him a little bit. There was something special about this boy. She felt he would be a helpful pet. "Tatsumi, you are going down the path of the weak. However I could make some arrangements, then you could be strong"

She drew the rapier at her side, then made a light cut on her wrist. She held out her hand. "Drink." The boy followed the wrist's movement with his eyes. He picked up his own hand then looked at it. He held it out, then took her hand in both of his. "Tatsumi, I will make you strong." And Tatsumi drank her blood, and with it the demon's blood.

The mark on her chest briefly lit up before going back to normal. A very similar mark appeared on Tatsumi's right hand. He stared at it in astonishment, before looking up to her.

She smiled. She wouldn't let the Minister get away with his execution this time. "My name is Esdeath. I do believe you will be working under me from now on."

He simply stared at her in shock, before nodding his head.

With one last glance at him Esdeath walked away. Her smile eventually twisted itself into a sadistic grin. _Oh, this is gonna be fun._

 **OwO**

 **My thought process is that he will only use Esdeath's Teigu in extreme cases, and use his other Teigu to fight (it will be revealed later)**

 **And also, his powers are only as great as Esdeath's were at this point (four years before the start of the story)**

 **And also I need help with the Teigu. No Incursio or other armor type. Please review or PM me to help. (I'm out of ideas)**


	2. Blood-Red Moon

**Finally** **updated. I was planning to write We Will Prevail, but started writing this instead...**

 **It is summer break by the end of tommorow!**

 **AKA: more updates**

 **Don't know which I'll focuse on, but both will be update. Though not regularly, just whenever I feel like it. But they will still be updated much quicker.**

 **I can't find the will to write The Black Wolf and The Flash anymore. I'll probably discontinue it...**

 **I know, big time-skip. Small flashbacks and regular thinking back kinda stuff will slowly explain what happened during that time over several chapters.**

 **OwO**

 _ **Four Years Later**_

Esdeath, now twenty-two, was grinning. A week ago her army had received orders to annihilate to Northern Tribe. Literally, Honest said the exact words.

It had taken her a full five days to get here. Esdeath's army was known to travel very fast, but the journey still felt like eternity. The scouts she sent out had returned five hours ago. Her army would be ready to deploy in just two more hours. Normally armies would take much longer to prepare, but sensing her wish for battle, her soldiers picked up the pace. Even now you could see the people running or shouting, they were hoping to please her.

Currently Esdeath was staring at her favorite pet, Tatsumi. He was just sitting there, awaiting orders. She was amused with how loyal he was. Even when he learned she worked under the Prime Minister, he didn't say anything. Of course he was frowning and glaring at the palace, but he didn't up and quit right there which said something.

Over four years, Tatsumi had grown to be able to hide his hate for the man very well. Unless you asked or already knew about it, you wouldn't know. It seems somewhere along the line he turned into a very useful asset to her army.

Esdeath would never admit it, but it pleases her greatly whenever Tatsumi uses his ice powers. He had mastered it quickly, and now only uses it in the right situation, or if he's in a bind. Though she had noticed, while her powers had grown, his had not. Esdeath figured it was because he only drank a small amount of her blood. Maybe if he earns it she would feed him more...

Her moment of thinking about her subordinate was cut short when someone shouted for her, "Esdeath-sama!" Both her and Tatsumi looked over. The man, now kneeled on the ground, was a messenger. Some of the fastest travelers, only for urgent messages or direct orders from someone high up. Esdeath figured it was the Minister, he being none too shy asking for things.

Her suspicions were proved correct when the messenger spoke, "The Prime Minister requests you finish quickly. Night Raid has moved to the capital, and he wants them removed."

 _Night Raid huh? Been a while since I've heard that name. Challenging them head on will get me nowhere. Though maybe information gathering first... No, wait. An undercover mission would be more than two birds with one stone. Information on Teigus, strategies, location of their base... That would be my best option, but who to send? Sending Daidara, River, or Nyau wouldn't work... Tatsumi. Not only is he fitting in appearance, but he's the only one I trust won't betray me, not to mention a top notch actor._

Decision made, Esdeath turned to her favorite subordinate. Tatsumi looked at her, seeing her thinking deeply, he waited for her decision on the matter. "Tatsumi, you will be returning to the Capital without me." A raised eyebrow was her response. "You'll infiltrate Night Raid as your average naive country boy, will that be too hard for you?"

He smiled innocently, "Excuse me, ma'am? Do you know how I can get into the army?"

She grinned, "Nice cover. But work on your facial expressions they are a little hard to believe. You're walking into a lions den, just smell a little nice and they'll try to bite you. Prepare for the trip now, you leave tonight. I'll be there after I finish up here. I better not find you dead. I'll trust you with this _S_ -Rank mission."

With a raised brow he nodded then left to get his belongings and some supplies. The only other S-Rank mission nearly got him killed. Then again a small slip up and a group of professional assassins wouldn't hesitate to kill him.

Esdeath then dismissed the messenger and was left to think. Her main thoughts were how to defeat all of the Northern Tribe. _Hmm, I've been wanting to try burying people alive, after hearing people talk about it. Maybe the survivors? I saw a large crack in the ground coming here..._

 ** _Two Weeks Later_**

Tatsumi had trudged through the snow nearly nonstop, reaching the Capital in two weeks. By foot it was quite the achievement, with the nonstop blizzards and deep snow, most would wonder how he wasn't a living block of ice. Of course his ice demon blood had given him a resistance to cold temperatures and ice and the like, at the cost of having a major weakness to heat.

Currently he was wearing different clothes, as his black uniform would easily blow his cover. He had on a light blue overcoat, with a white vest over a black dress shirt. Along with dark blue pants, and black combat boots, he also wore a black sheath at his side. A simple looking claymore there, with a blue handle. Black gloves hid his mark from the world. A scarf that almost seemed to be covered in ice was around his neck.

It was actually covered in ice though. Being a gift from Esdeath after completing a particularly hard and deadly mission, he always wore it.

Tatsumi was just re-entering the Capital. While he has seen it many times before, he used this as part of his disguise, "Whoa! This is the Capital? It's HUGE!" A look of wonder and amazement was plastered on his face. Whenever coming back here he wore a black cloak and hid in the shadows, as per Esdeath's orders. He bore no real amazement, but he hoped to catch some attention.

Mere seconds after he finished his sentence he heard the whispers.

"A country bumpkin, huh. Not suprised."

"Hmph. He'll catch attention like that."

"Always have the same reaction, I almost feel sorry for him."

"Ha ha. Wait 'till he finds out the "true" Capital."

"Naive as always. I have yet to see a level-headed one."

"Another one? Aren't they coming more often lately? I swear two came by just yesterday."

Tatsumi had a hard time not frowning. Working under Esdeath got him many enemies but he didn't have to deal with insults and the like, being an assassin. He moved forward with a bright smile still on his face. Looking around as if questioning where to go he eventually went left, to where he knew an army recruit office is.

He was pretty famous, or infamous if you prefer, as an assassin. When someone saw a black cloaked figure it would naturally scare them, of course. But if they saw one with a mask and scarf, they fled on sight.

Purposely getting himself kicked out, he saw a blond woman walk up to him. _This woman... I can smell blood, no matter how faintly. This must be who I'm looking for._ She looked him over, probably curious about his clothes, before telling him she had a way to get him into the army. While this "help" was unneeded, he needed information so he went anyway, acting grateful all the way.

After a small talk, with lots of money spending on his part, he had to give up some of his money to please her. Right after she left he rose up from his seat, _Later tonight I'll strike their most probable target. If that fails they would at least be aware of my presence, which I can manipulate to become a recruitment._

 _ **Later That Day**_

He had been invited to stay at a girl, Aria, and her family's house. That made things easier. Aria and her family had rumors surrounding them. With their content Tatsumi figured out what happened and figured they were Night Raid's next target. The latter was mostly a guess with some hope behind it, but Tatsumi was known for his good intuition in Esdeath's army.

Studying what information they had on the group during his journey, Tatsumi had a good idea of their ideals and goals. He figured their ultimate target was the Prime Minister, something he wouldn't mind actually.

During dinner Tatsumi noticed something off about the food. Most wouldn't notice it, but he had much training in poisons. He was immune to it, thanks to the demon's blood, but it still bothered him. The poison was likely to put him to sleep or paralyze him. He had heard the rumors himself.

He took his chances and played the first one, "I feel a little tired, so I hope you don't mind me excusing myself." He didn't miss the wicked look in Aria's eyes.

 ** _That Night_**

Tatsumi was cleaning his sword of any dirt or dust from the trip. It's blade was now visible, smooth dark blue metal ran on one half, while turquoise ran over the other. A small blue gem rested on the hilt.

Tatsumi smiled at the sword, "We'll tear these idiots to bits. Right, Minakami?" The small gem lit up briefly, and Tatsumi smiled. "Yeah I know. But our goal right now is to join Night Raid." His sword speaks to him directly into his mind. Unfortunately, unknowing people just thought he was crazy.

Suddenly he felt waves of killing intent being thrown at him. His smile vanished, being replaced with seriousness. "Finally here? Took them long enough." The jewel glowed once more, Tatsumi frowned. He turned his head to look at the door, then he ran through the door barreling straight into Aria's mother. She had three guards with her, all of which, were heavily suprised.

Tatsumi flashed a demented grin before lunging forward.

 _ **Elsewhere**_

In another room a blond woman stood. Her head had two cat ears on the top. Her eyes slits, and her fangs larger. A tail wiggled in excitement. Her hands were enlarged and furry, choking a man.

"P-please I have a daughter." The man coughed through the choking.

"Don't worry she'll join you soon." His eyes widened.

"You wouldn't... Have you no mercy?"

"Mercy? What's that?"

 _ **With Tatsumi**_

He ran through the hallways, but a red glow from the windows caught his attention. Bloodlust turned the full moon red. The giant sphere illuminated the grounds, but also announced a certain group's presence.

Four guards came, only to be annihilated in the next second. Tatsumi raised a brow, slightly surprised. Soon though, his eyes caught movement. After searching for a bit his eyes found Aria running somewhere, a guard pulling her.

Tatsumi ran after them hoping to intercept them and get the group's favor by stealing their target. The sword's gem flashed, but he ignored it's words.

After finally catching up, he decided to wait until they reached their goal, the storehouse. When they finally reached it they opened the door wide, before walking inside and closing it. Tatsumi had seen what was hidden in there. _So the rumors were true. All of them about the torture and disease._

A flash of movevent revealed Akame.

Tatsumi grimaced. He had met Akame on a mission before, a very hard one. He was wearing his cloak and uniform at the time as well as a mask, so she wouldn't recognize him. He had fought her during the mission, but while he came out victorious, her allies had arrived so he hadn't finished her off. Esdeath herself commended him for surviving and gifted him with the scarf he still wore.

That was seven months ago. More than enough time for her to train and grow stronger. He would hate to be on the receiving end of her new power. But it was an important mission so his opinion didn't matter.

Deciding to jump in, he slashed Akame's sword out of her hands right after she opened the doors. Bullets ran through the air, but were dodged by both parties. Akame was clearly suprised at his action, but got into stance anyway.

Tatsumi knew very well that hand-to-hand can't beat someone good with the sword. He smirked briefly, before plastering a face of rage on. "What's with you people?! Just because these guys have money you'll kill these innocent people?" _Ha. As if. I know their every reason for doing this. The old me before I met Esdeath probably would've said that though. Actually he would've loved these guys. 'Fighters of Justice' probably._

He saw Akame pause, before saying, "You are not a target. Step aside." He could barely keep the smile off his face. He knew Akame before she defected, her being kind despite her career.

"No!" Was his firm answer. She charged, but he knew she wouldn't attack. She was using his shoulder as a stepping stone when he attacked. It was a simple stab to her ankle, but it caught her off guard. She definitely underestimated him, thinking he wouldn't react in time.

In an attempt to dodge, she jumped off, away from her targets. Unfortunately (or fortunately) it still caught her, rendering her unable to walk. She ended up falling to the ground, much to her dismay. He stepped forward.

While his mission was to infiltrate, he could just change his appearance and it would be the same. Akame had caused both him and Esdeath much trouble, so now she would pay.

When he reached her she made a feeble attempt to punch him, but he blocked and gave her two more slashes on her wrists. He couldn't keep the sadistic smile off his face when he swung his blade. Her eyes widened. She tried her hand at dragging herself away, but was much to slow. Her wounds definitely didn't help either.

Before it reached her neck though, Tatsumi felt a firm hand wrap around his shirt collar, pulling him away. "Eh?" With a dumbfounded face he stared at Akame. Akame stared right back, having expected to be dead by now. Seeing the face he had made, she knew he would show no mercy.

He looked up to where the hand came from. It was the lady that had swindled him. Putting his facade on he was able to fool the woman, but he could feel Akame's suspicious glare. Turning from a sadist to an innocent bumpkin wasn't exactly a mood swing.

 _Split personalities..? That would probably be the best cover. Unfortunately. Split personalities usually came from a traumatic event of some sort... Time to make up a horrible and bloody past._

"Hmm? Aren't you the lad from earlier today?" He pretended to look confused while staring at her, then realization surfaced on his face.

"Ah! Your the boob lady!" He made up the funny name to further strengthen his facade, "Yep! The beautiful Onee-san from that time!" She said it with a cute smile, that didn't affect Tatsumi.

Akame was slightly confused, but still glared at him. Her red eyes made it worse.

Then the 'beautiful Onee-san' turned serious, "Lad, you said 'these innocent people' right?" She walked over to the shed. "Then would 'innocent people' do this?" She threw open the doors.

He stared feigning shock, before slowly walking over there. He twisted the 'shock' into horror. Seeing all the corpses he chose the first one near his age he saw. A girl with straight black hair and a flower in her hair, all covered in blood. "S-Sayo? Is that you Sayo?" A random name he came up with to help with the backstory he just came up with.

"Someone you know?" Blond lady's voice came through she had picked up Akame and was piggybacking her. Said girl still had not relented her glare.

"Y-yeah. I thought she was dead... Now she really is." Indeed her left leg was cut completely off and the multiple bruises said clearly she was long dead. He didn't really know her, but she did kinda remind him of someone back in his destroyed village...

While staring up at the dead girl he heard Aria rant about cows and hicks... He put his plan into action, as he walked past the two assassins. It was simple: Operation Split Personality.

He stopped right in front of her, and with a dark grin chopped her in half. Straight down the middle of her face, all the way the the dirt. Both actions seemed to mildly suprise the 'boob' woman. She seemed to think for a moment, before grabbing his collar again and dragging him off.

She said something about recruiting him, which he retorted to for the sake of his disguise. He ended up asking her to bring the body back for a burial. Esdeath and her subordinates only used mass graves but he figured he could make an exception. _Hmm... This was easier than I thought. But then again, my impression of these assassins might be off, by quite a lot. But the first part of my mission has been fulfilled. Now I need to keep myself in this group and gather information... I wonder when Esdeath-sama is gonna finish..._

 **OwO**

 **FYI: Minakami translates to aquatic**

 **His Teigu controls water, as too boost his ice powers. River's Teigu was changed slightly so it now controls wind, but it doesn't have a big impact on the plot at all.**

 **This went a little fast but oh well. You might have noticed but Tatsumi really hates Akame. Later on he'll warm up a bit.**

 **You might have noticed he is a little bit of a sadist. Long story short it comes from being with Esdeath.**

 **I don't think Mine x Tatsumi is possible really. Probably Esdeath or Akame...**

 **I'm going to follow the original storyline for the most part until maybe Esdeath comes back... So wait for it.**

 **Now this takes the place as longest chapter written! Congrats! Me! Yes I know 3k words is pathetic. :3**

 **For any who read these notes, please review.**


	3. The Water God's Bane

**Yeah... I've been busy but this is a little longer than before haha.**

 **OwO**

After being carried away by the lady, she brought him to their base. Obviously he wasn't allowed to go inside, but he now knew where it was. Step Two complete.

The lady had introduced herself later as Leone. She introduced Akame too, even though it was unnecessary.

When you think of an assassin group's base, you wouldn't think it would look like Night Raid's did. It was a small group of huge buildings. Twelve windows on the biggest one, along with the Night Raid symbol at the top. Needless to say, it wasn't very 'hidden'. In fact, it was a wonder it hadn't been found yet.

Over on a hill near said base, Tatsumi was sitting in front of a small grave. It was only made up of two stones, but it marked where the girl was buried. Tatsumi was holding his hands together with his eyes closed in a praying stance. But while most would think he was talking to a fallen friend, his thoughts were elsewhere.

 _It's been three days... When is their boss gonna get back? It shouldn't take that long to do a mission, or whatever else their doing. While I'm sitting here staring at a rock, I could have been getting valuable information to help Esdeath-sama..._

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt something warm press onto his head. He immediately knew who it was.

"W-what are you doing?!" It was hard to fake a blush, but when he backed away in not-so-hard-to-feign suprise he saw it worked. Leone smirked playfully, "Come on! You shouldn't sulk forever! It been three days! You've decided to join Night Raid right?" While saying this she wrapped her arm around his neck.

While he definitely needed to join Night Raid, being so eager would crack his facade. Definitely not a wise idea. He opted to wait a few days pretending to mourn for the girl. Of course it was boring as hell, but he didn't want to take anymore chances. Akame being suspicious was bad enough, but if his incompetence with this mission served to hurt Esdeath, he would never forgive himself.

"I... guess I could join. I don't have a choice do I?" He faked a sulky expression.

Seeing his face, Leone smiled in a knowing kind of way, "If that's what you want! I'll show you around the hideout today!" Unfortunately the semi-encouraging words had no affect when she decided to put strength in the arm, choking him a little.

"Hey! My neck!"

"By the way these mountains are 10km from the Capital."

"Is it okay to leave it so open?! Aren't you assassins for hire!?"

Sure what he was being shown was helpful to his general, it didn't change how uncomfortable the position he was in was to his neck.

 _ **Meeting Room**_

"Huh? Your being shown the base? Does that mean you've decided to join us?" The speaker was a woman with purple hair and eyes. She had a thin scar on her cheek along with glasses and was wearing a Chinese style dress. A small hat rested upon her head. She was reading from a book. Curious Tatsumi looked at the title, '100 ways to cure being an airhead' _This must be an assembly of misfits or something..._

"Yeah, I've been thinking about it. And I would probably be killed if I did join so it's not much of a choice..." He smiled sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head.

"Hey! Leone, why are you letting that guy into our hideout?!" The girl pointing at him, clearly did not like him. Her hair and eyes, along with every visible article of clothing she wore, was pink. She clearly had an obsession with the color. She seemed to have an arrogant personality, it was his first impression though so it might not be so. Her hair was in two pigtails, being tied with ribbons.

In fact the only reason he didn't tease her or annoy her about it, is because he was in a similar situation. His clothes were all a different shade of blue. His favor of the color was mostly because of his Teigus.

"Because he's one of us!"

"He isn't one of us until he gets the boss' permission!" In her fit of annoyance, she turned to look at him. After a few seconds she finally spoke. "Not qualified. I doubt he'd be able to work with professionals like us at all, just from looking at his face!"

"What was that?!"

"It's fine. Mine's like that to everyone."

"Hmph!"

 ** _Training Grounds_**

"Dooryaaahh! Hiya! Hiya! Hiya! Hiya!" A clearly masculine voice could be heard.

Tatsumi and Leone had traveled from the meeting room, to outside.

"This is the stress-reliever place known as the training grounds! And..." She said pointing to a man," Over there, the one who clearly reeks of sweat is Bulat." Bulat was, put simply, _very_ well muscled. And, like Leone said, was covered in sweat.

 _Bulat, the Hundred-Man Slayer. When he defected I had only served for Esdeath-sama for barely a year. I remember him looking different though... Must be that ridiculous hairdo. But even so, his spear handling is on par if not greater than some of Esdeath-sama's best spear users. He will be a terrifying foe, that's for sure._

It seemed while Tatsumi was lost in his thoughts, Bulat had finished. "Pheeeeeeeww. Ah! It's Leone! And... Your the dude Leone dragged off!"

"Huh? How do you know me?" He honestly knew that Bulat was the one in the armor from nights before, but he wasn't supposed to know of Teigus so he kept quiet about that.

"Hmm? Is it your first time seeing me like this? I'm the guy that was covered in armor the other night."

"Oh? Ah!"

"It's nice to meet you." Bulat said when they spoke hands.

"H-Hi." In truth he actually _was_ nervous, it was not an act. This is the man who had killed 128 people much more skilled than your average soldier. What's worse, in less than 4 hours. Esdeath herself, even if absentmindedly, said he would be a formidable opponent. Which, by the way, was another way of saying he is very strong.

"Hey, Hey. Be careful. This guy's a homo." Leone said. Her hand was held up to block Bulat from hearing, but her voice's volume said it wasn't supposed to be secret.

"Hey!" But then flowers seemed to surround him. His blush definitely made it all the more awkward as he looks to the floor. "He'd misunderstand right?"

 _He isn't denying it! Misunderstand what exactly? Esdeath-sama, how do you always find ways to make me uncomfortable?_

Needless to say, Tatsumi officially didn't know how to act around Bulat. He was smiling awkwardly, clearly suprised at this new information.

 ** _Elsewhere_**

"Hah... It's almost time for Leone's bath! I won't think twice about danger to see those breasts!"

"Then how about I break two fingers?"

Leone was merciless to this seemingly would-be peeper. After the guy stopped screaming from pain, Tatsumi got a look at him.

 _I'm to take an educated guess and say this is their information gatherer. Supposedly he defected the moment he heard of Najenda's defect. A crush maybe? The only thing was, they never found who it was... So no picture. That also means that his skills are better than they seem... But of course, among a group of weirdos, their information gatherer is a pervert._

It seems, this person liked green. A green coat matched his green hair and eyes. It seemed each Night Raid member had to have a color scheme. If it was a rule he wouldn't have a problem.

"You never learn Lubba."

"Fuck! I can still go on!"

"Then it's the arm next. And so, this idiot is Lubbock!"

Tatsumi swore he could hear 'Lubba' saying, "No, in fact this is also good in and of itself!" _Please tell me he isn't a masochist... Actually wait, if he is then Esdeath will have a nice toy? Hmm... But I can't be sure with just one sentence from him._

"Next is... Maybe at the riverbed?"

"I think I've had enough though..." True. While among Esdeath's army there were a large amount of ridiculous people, he usually didn't have to deal with them. Him literally being Esdeath's right hand man.

"Ahahaha! Next is a pretty girl, so you can look forward to it~ See that one over there is Akame! Isn't she cute?"

 _Akame!? Leone doesn't seem to get that we're not friends at all... Whether she knows it or not, Akame has tried, and almost succeeded to kill me three times. Then again a almost killed her twice myself, count the other day and that makes three times... Though we've fought at least... Seven times? No eight? We encounter each other often it seems... We're enemies through and through. And also... is that an evilbird?_

A danger beast was hanging on it's side, dead and cooking, over a fire. Alongside said fire was Akame. She looked to Leone emotionlessly, but the moment she saw him a red-eyed glare was leveled to him. Okay, she's still suspicious.

Except, with a giant cooked bird leg in her hand, and some traces of it on her face, it wasn't as intimidating... or creepy. The bandages on her ankle and wrists definitely didn't help either.

"You should eat too Leone." She held out a leg for said lady, ignoring him.

Leone, noticing this, said, "Aw! Come on Akame are you still mad about that? He just caught you off guard!"

 _True. If I hadn't caught her off guard I would have taken me much longer to land such a strike. In that time her allies would likely have come to help, meaning, Game Over. It was truly bad luck that Leone came at that time... I doubt I'll be able to catch her off guard again, during a fight, that is._

"It's not that..." Tatsumi knew what she was talking about. Though it seemed Leone didn't.

"Even so, aren't you being extravagant today?"

"The boss is back." She pointed over to a white haired woman. Tatsumi immediately recognized her.

 _Najenda?!_ She's _the_ _leader_ _of Night Raid? The Empire suspected she was working with Night Raid but to be the leader... Hah. Esdeath-sama is going to be_ so _happy. She's hit the jackpot being put in charge of their elimination._

"Yo." Najenda was smiling at them, not knowing who their soon-to-be newest recruit was.

"Boss! Welcome back! Do you have any souvenirs?"

"Putting that aside Leone, in the job three days ago it seems you went over the operation time, eh?"

Claerly panicking, Leone immediately started running away, only to be stopped by Najenda's arm. It seemed her mechanical limb had unusual abilities. The moment it started reeling in, a horrible screeching sound, clearly from the arm, came out.

"It's not good to have too much fun killing strong targets. You need to fix that habit of yours."

"I got it so stop that screeching sound!"

When Leone finally got up, Najenda asked the question Tatsumi had been waiting for, "By the way, who's that young boy?"

"Oh right! Boss! I recommend this talented guy!"

"Huh?! Will you stop doing that?!" He was completely ignored.

"Does he show promise?" The mood had gotten serious.

"He does."

Then the serious mood completely evaporated. Now the rather ridiculous attitude of Leone was showing through.

"Well anyway just give it a try!"

"The wage is high too." Akame seemed to have briefly gotten out of her suspicions in favor of getting a strong ally.

 _Is this a part time job?!_ It seemed his thoughts didn't show on his face because Najenda spoke up, "Akame, gather everyone in the meeting room. I want to hear the results of the latest mission in detail, along with information about this young boy."

 ** _Meeting Room_**

"Hmm. I see. I understand the situation now. Tatsumi, would you like to join Night Raid?"

"I'm dead if I decline right? I've thought about it during the three days, and that seems most probable."

"No, we won't kill you. But since you can't go back you would have to work in the labor workshops. Given you won't die if you decline, what do you think?"

Seems he'll need to explain a little of his fake backstory. "I planned to make money in the Capital to save my village. Two of my friends came with me, but I've found one dead. Who knows what could have happened to the other." He tried his best to fake an expression he never showed: regret.

Thankfully no one seemed to notice, or at least that's how it appeared. Akame had been paying very close attention to him he knew, but his acting was first among Esdeath's entire army. He hoped that the many lessons stage actors and con artists that had helped train him had put him through would pay off.

Akame was the only one who noticed. Then again, Akame was the only one that he probably couldn't take in a one on one. _It depends on what the others' Teigu do._

Bulat was the one that spoke next, "The reason the countryside is poor is because the center I rotten. Wouldn't you need to uproot the source of the rot? As a man!"

"Bulat was originally a skilled soldier of the Empire. Though after learning of it's corruption he became one of us," Najenda explained.

"Well yeah, our work is to eliminate the evil doers in the Capital. It's much better than working under those people."

He already had his mind set, but Tatsumi wanted to see how much Najenda would try to convince him. See how important recruiting is to these assassins. "But even if you kill the bad guys little by little, the world wouldn't change greatly by it right? Remote places like my village wouldn't be saved."

"I see. But that makes Night Raid suit you even more."

"How come?"

"Far to the south of the Capital, there is the hideout of an Anti-Empirical force. The Revolutionary Army. The Revolutionary Army, which started out small, has grown into a large-scale organization. So, of course, a unit to handle covert jobs, such as assassination and imformation gathering, was formed. That's us, Night Raid. Right now we're exterminating the Capital's ticks. However, in the event that the Army attacks, we will take advantage of the confusion and the Prime Minister, who is the cause of the corruption, we will kill him ourselves!"

 _Take out the Prime Minister? Maybe I can get along with these guys... At least it's better that we share a common enemy... Hah? But that doesn't mean we can be allies! Esdeath-sama is my only friend! Whoever is her enemy is mine as well! That guy will die by my sword, not Akame's!_

He couldn't keep the suprise from his face but he didn't speak a word. Najenda continued with her speech, gauging his reaction.

"That's our goal. We have others but that is for another time. While I can't say anything specific about when they'll rise to action, we've prepared a plan to win. When that time comes, the country _will change_ for sure."

Finishing her speech, Najenda waited to answer the questions sure to follow.

 _Esdeath-sama... This mission may be harder than I originally thought. Out of that whole speech the only thing useful right now is the direction of their base location... But it's obvious they're preparing something big. Crap. They are clearly confident it will take out both Esdeath-sama and Great General Budo. I'm very curious as to what it is..._

During the time he was lost in his thoughts he made sure to stared a the floor with a troubled expression.

He mentally sighed as he realized he would have to reply in a way that completely defied the beliefs he gained working under Esdeath.

"Will the new country treat it's citizens well?" He looked up to Najenda. It was an obvious answer but it was a decent question from someone who was supposed to be naive.

"Of course."

It was clear to the assassins that he was going to join judging by his expression. But even so, Najenda had one question that needed answering before he could actually join.

"Tatsumi. Before anything else, Akame reported to me earlier that you had a... mood swing... three nights before."

 _It's not that! I was actually showing you a bit of my true nature! But you guys can't know that..._

"That happens to me sometimes... I get a little weird... It's difficult to explain, but my friends say I get meaner and stronger."

He saw Najenda's eyes widen before she seemed to figure out what he wanted her to think. "I see do you remember when this started happening?"

"Hmm... I think when I first went hunting with my father. I don't remember what happened though..." He molded his face into that of a troubled kid. Tatsumi didn't completely lie though. It was during his first hunting trip that Honest destroyed his village. His Teigu was completely carrying him during his raid of the palace.

Najenda sighed. Even Akame seemed to have accepted his answer, momentarily forgetting about his slip up in acting. His background check had presented no suspicious behavior.

"Each person here has their reasons to be here, and are prepared... Will you join them?"

"How will I be rewarded?"

"We receive money from doing jobs. The amount could save a town or two from starvation."

"Then I'll do it! Let me into Night Raid!"

Mine, who had been quiet throughout the conversation, finally spoke up, "You might not be able to go back to your village though."

"That's fine. As long as they don't starve."

"It's decided. Welcome to the path of carnage, Tatsumi."

It was briefly silent, before Tatsumi heard a soft whirring sound. Before he could figure out what it was a different voice spoke up.

"Intruders, Najenda-san!"

"What are their numbers and locations?"

"According to the reaction from my barrier, it feels like eight people! They're all pretty close to the base!"

 _A barrier?! Well any plans of a sneaky invasion were just blown out the window. Great._

"Hmm they're good. To have sniffed out this place... means they're probably mercenaries from another race. There's no other choice. It's an emergency. Let none of them return alive."

 _Oh? The atmosphere changed..._

"Go!"

All members of Night Raid went exept Tatsumi. Needless to say Esdeath always had a different way of sending them to kill intruders. He realized he was expected to go, a little to late...

"What are you spacing out for? Go _eliminate_ them!" It seems a slap from a metal hand can hurt...

As he ran through the base, he got out the door in time to see Night Raid disappear into the forest. After briefly thinking it out he decided to go along the river. Eventually he found three of the mercenaries.

"Oh? It's a kid! Hey, hey, are you someone from Night Raid? I knew they were around here! It was worth searching steadily." The one in the middle was doing all the talking, but the other two were smiling greedily.

"Hey. Come on can't you answer me? I'm curious! Heheh"

"Yeah! Yeah! You're from Night Raid right? I'll bet you have a bunch of pretty girls over there, yeah? Let us have some too!"

Tatsumi was staring at them, bored. _Am I supposed to say, "Yeah of course! The base is right over that way!" Hah... It's times like these that I wish these assassins had a torture chamber. Oh well I guess I can immobilize them then torture them here. If the others found me, I would have an excuse anyway._

Mind made up, he smirked sadistically and drew his sword.

The three mercenaries stopped their chatter when they saw him drawing his sword. They pulled out their own weapons and settled into a fighting stance.

"Haha! Are you gonna fight? It's three on one! You think you can beat us?"

Before the guy could go into a rant Tatsumi raised his sword, the tip pointing to the sky. Then he said his first words to the trio.

"You know, there's a reason I decided to go alongside the river. Oh but don't worry. I'll make sure to take really nice care of you."

As he was saying that, the water started to rise. Each word edging the mass higher until a large wave of water was surrounding Tatsumi. The river was reduced to a mere stream.

"Oops. Oh well, it's gonna rain soon enough." Tatsumi mumbled looking at said stream.

Then he turned to the mercenaries, "Well here you go!" He swung his sword at them. And while the blade far from reached them, the wave rose up even more before copying the sword and slashing its way towards the mercenaries.

After the water washed away, three broken bodies were revealed.

"Ah... Maybe I shouldn't have used so much water... I ended up killing them. Oh well. Heeeey Akame! Can you stop spying on me it's weird."

Said girl dropped out of a nearby tree. "When did you notice me?"

"When? Probably around when I stopped to get rid of these guys."

 _ **Elsewhere**_

Mine was crouching upon a cliff, her gun pointed to a faraway target. "Hmm, he's run quite faraway... I'll have to expose myself in order to hit him." Right after she finished mumbling a mercenary jumped from the undergrowth. A shout of "Gotcha" was heard from his throat, unaware of the smirk stretching across Mine's face.

Just before his weapon reached her a giant pair of scissors cut through his waist.

"I'm sorry."

"Thanks Shelle. Nice pinch. I'll reach just fine with this risk!"

As she was saying that her rifle started charging up, before a beam of light stretched it's way to the head of a mercenary. After the light faded a large cut in the forest revealed were said person had been completely obliterated.

"Right on target! The more of a pinch I'm in the stronger I get!"

Somewhere else in the forest Leone was sitting on another, beat up, mercenary. Her ear twitched.

"Oh. That was Mine's Pumpkin just now. I don't know why she uses such a bothersome Teigu. On that point, for me I just turn into a beast a beat them to death. Easy to understand."

 ** _In a Cave_**

"Oh I thought the weight on my threads felt light. So it was a girl huh."

As Lubbock said a girl was being suspended in air by a large amount of strings.

With tears in her eyes she tried to plead with him. "Save me! Please! I'll do anything!"

"Nooope. I once knew a friend who died being fooled by a woman's charms."

As more pressure was put on the strings, they drew blood. And seconds later the corpse fell to the floor.

"Aww! This occupation can be so wasteful in times like this!" Lubbock sighed while walking away.

 _ **Back with Mine and Shelle**_

"I wonder if that newbie died." Mine was balancing her walk on a log.

"I don't think that will be a problem."

"It's rare for you to evaluate someone Shelle." Mine said as she sat down on the log.

"He actually caught Akame off guard and even wounded her, after all."

"Well that's true..."

"Besides how he seems to have another personality that's better at fighting, Akame said that she wanted to see how strong he is when he goes all out."

"Yeah. That newbie seems to be quite strong," Mine said. Her face was that if annoyance at having been left in the dust.

 ** _Elsewhere_**

The last remaining mercenary wore a wolf covering his face. As he ran to escape a shadow passed over him. That is, until Tatsumi landed on his shoulders. The sudden weight sent the mercenary to the ground.

"W-wait! Please! M-my family needs m-"

Before he could finished a katana wedged itself into his neck, silencing him for good.

"I was gonna finish him you know." Tatsumi looked to the owner of the katana as she ripped it from the corpse.

"Even so." She said simply.

Then a roar was heard as an armored figure broke through the brush.

"The enemy ran this way!"

"Bulat?"

"Huh? Ah..." Bulat quieted downed as he looked from Akame to Tatsumi, then to the corpse. "Aww, oh well..."

 ** _Later That Night_**

"Nice work on your first battle, Tatsumi."

"Sure."

In the background Bulat was chugging some beer while standing on the table.

"Hearing Akame's report, you have a Teigu?"

All the members turned to Najenda in suprise. Even half-drunk Bulat and air headed Shelle.

"Teigu?" He wasn't supposed to know, so it was fine to ask.

"You don't know? Well basically weapons with superpowers that help their wielder's."

"Oh! That makes sense. So kinda like this one?" He drew his sword and held it out for her to examine.

"Hmmm... Lubbock." Said person immediately got out a book and held it to her. She took it and started flipping through the pages.

After a bit she stopped on a page near the middle of the book. "This one," She said. It looked exactly like Tatsumi's sword. "Water God's Bane: Minakami. A Teigu that controls water." Tatsumi nodded an affirmative. "I see can you show us some of it's abilities?"

Tatsumi frowned, "I could here but it would take a little while to collect the water in the atmosphere. It much easier if I already have a source of water to use."

Najenda nodded, "What about the river?"

Then Akame spoke up, "That's what he use to kill the mercenaries. It's barely a stream now."

"Ah. I forgot about that. Sorry? But it should rain soon."

"You said that earlier can you control the weather?"

"No. But I can sense the conditions needed for it to happen. And my powers are amplified when it's raining."

Najenda didn't seem to want them to ramble on anymore, as she finally spoke. "Okay we'll until after it's done raining. You will work with Akame from now on. Good night." Then she walked back inside.

 _I'm working with Akame?! Okay..._

Slowly, the other members followed her. Until it was only Akame and Tatsumi.

Akame turned to him, "I know you're hiding something and I am going to find out what it is. Good night."

"Good night."

After she left, he looked up into the sky. _Esdeath-sama... I have my work cut out for me._

 **OwO**

 **Well yeah. This was mostly seeing how Tatsumi thought about them. I'll try to get the next chapter out quicker but no guarantee.**

 **Since I unintentionally overpowered Tatsumi I might have to up Night Raid's strength but oh well. Hahah**

 **Please tell me what you think in a review.**

 **PM me for random stuff, but Review for questions about the story etc.**


	4. Captain of the Police

**About the name of Tatsumi's Teigu, I was thinking, that if a human has more control over water than a water god, then the God could be killed like that. Although you could think of it whichever way you want.**

 **Funny:**

 **Earlier today, me and my brother were eating chicken strips from a restaurant, when he was all like, "Dammit! I'm eating mashed potatoes!" I of course looked at him like he was stupid before asking what he meant by that. My response was, "I founded FOPR, Federation of Potato Rights, a few days ago, and I'm eating mashed potatoes right now!" That led to me teasing him and laughing a him of course.**

 **Also sorry for my raging earlier. The guy who wrote the major copy of this story actually deleted his story's chapters, and says their gonna start anew...**

 **I give thanks to the few who decided to review/PM.**

* * *

His eyes twitched. An eye squinted open. The ceiling slowly came into focus as Tatsumi woke up.

He yawned before realizing it was already late in the day. The sun was high in the sky in the limited view his window provided him. "Didn't I agree to make breakfast..? Oh well. Their fault for not waking me up."

As he walked into the room he noticed only Leone and Akame were there. He yawned, "Where are the others?"

Akame stared at him silently, while Leone chuckled before answering,"They got a request to kill someone. Why'd you sleep in?"

"I don't know, though I'm kinda suprised you didn't wake me up..." He eyed Akame, his partner, as he expected her to say something. Maybe ignoring this or perhaps just not wanting to, she remained silent.

Leone ended up laughing at the staring contest between the two. Their 'contest' went on for over a minute in silence while Leone watched intently.

"Since you woke up late we'll have to make dinner instead. Let's go take some lives." It seemed Akame finally decided to speak, for food. She looked away in favor of getting prepared, not noticing Tatsumi's triumphant smirk. That is, before he realized his new task.

"You mean hunting don't you." He deadpanned before following her. Even if he didn't want to, she was technically in charge of him. She merely nodded.

Afterwards he ended up following Akame through the forest, large baskets on their backs. At the top of a steep hill Akame stopped. "We've arrived."

"Ooooh, a pool?" As said, a waterfall pooled water in a large clearing. Rocks lined the edge of the seemingly shallow pool.

Tatsumi turned to Akame only to see her holding her hand out, looking at him expectantly. He noticed her basket was near the edge of the rock they were standing on.

"What?"

"Our targets are underwater. I will not allow you to use your Teigu."

"Of course..." He gave sword-and-sheath to her waiting hand, sighing all the way. "So what are we hunting?"

"Large River Tuna."

"If you say so. But how deep is this pool? Those guys are so 'rare' because they always live at least 50 feet under the surface in freshwater." He followed Akame's example and put his basket down near the edge.

"30 yards."

"EH?! But it looks so shallow."

"You need to erase your presence and strike when you get close. Swim along the riverbed. Come on." She dived down closely followed by Tatsumi.

The underwater world was comprised of algae and water plants covering the rocks at the floor tiny fish fled from the two intruders while their targets swam down below.

Tatsumi followed Akame's instructions, and soon enough he had caught his first fish.

 ** _Later That Day_**

"So, Tatsumi caught almost as many as _Akame_? I'm suprised. I didn't think you were good with stealth." Leone was eyeing him while eating her meal.

Najenda however, was just as shocked as Leone, "For a first-timer, you did very well. Have you done this before?"

"Fishing with my bare hands? No. Sneaking up on things? Yes." Najenda seemed content with his answer.

"You won't need as much work as I thought." Akame was playing with a fish's head when she said this.

 _I'll take that as a compliment._

"Leone. Tell me about the request we received a few days ago."

"Our targets are and oil merchant named Gamal, and Ogre of the Capital guards." As she explained about the client and Ogre's wrongdoings, Tatsumi tuned her out while pretending to listen.

 _Ogre huh? That one-eyed idiot who doesn't know how to lay low? He's only a Captain, but I guess I shoudn't go easy on him. He_ is _known for being cautious._

"All right Night Raid will accept this mission. We will deliver punishment to these monsters and send them to the afterlife."

"Taking out Gamal will be easy but Ogre is a Captain, he'll be a little difficult."

After a small bit of talking it was decided that Tatsumi and Akame were going against Ogre. Leone taking Gamal.

"The target will be eliminated."

"Alright! Let's go bust a head in!"

 _Honestly..._

 _ **Later on**_

As Akame and Tatsumi traveled through the Capital to reach Ogre's location, both were silent.

Later that night, when Ogre was finally done drinking, the two assassins trailed him. Akame was on the roofs of the buildings while Tatsumi walked silently behind Ogre, on the ground.

 ** _Elsewhere_**

A man who's face looked oddly like a turtle walked down a hall, two furry hands reached out from the shadows.

With out much of a sound the turtle-man also known as Gamal was strangled.

 ** _With the Remaining Target_**

After a few twists and turns, Ogre stopped at a dead end.

"Hmph, if you wanted to trail me you could at least do it better." He spoke loudly. "Why don't you come out so we could talk?" When he said this Tatsumi could barely keep his face straight, as he had a very big urge to smile sadistically.

"Sorry Ogre, but my mission isn't to talk to you." Tatsumi stepped out of the shadows.

"Mission? Are you apart of Night Raid?" His eyes had narrowed dangerously, but he still made no move to attack.

"Bingo. Now do you want to do this the easy way or the hard way?"

Clearly annoyed, Ogre charged at him, weapon drawn. "As if! I'll just kill you first!"

This time Tatsumi couldn't keep the sadistic smile off his face, "Hard way it is then. Oh I wonder how long you can last..." He held his hand out as if to grab something, while Minakami seemed to magically float into his hand. In reality the water in the atmosphere collected enough around the sword to support it enough to bring it to its wielder's hand.

As the first sounds of metal upon metal were heard, Akame observed the battle.

Ogre's first move would have been a massive blow, had it hit. Tatsumi jumped over the horizontal slash and aimed to cut of his arms only for neither slashes to hit. Ogre ended up kicked Tatsumi away, lest he end up minus two limbs. Tatsumi flew away but regained his balance soon after stopping.

He frowned maybe he underestimated Ogre a bit too much. That was when, from the air, water droplets formed. In seconds they joined together in a water sphere as big as Ogre himself. The mass of water formed into thin half-rings of water. When Tatsumi slashes his blade down the curved water shot forward.

This time Ogre arms really were cut off.

With a pained scream, Ogre fell to his knees. Tatsumi walked up to him, pulling out a small knife.

"Taking the hard way was choice." As Ogre stared at him with a confused yet still pained stare Tatsumi smirked.

"Oh didn't I tell you? The easy way is always _boring_." Then he showed his true colors. "But the hard way is so _fun!_ "

Pained screams could be heard throughout the night.

When the duo got back it was already past midnight. And while Akame looked like her usual emotionless self, Tatsumi didn't. Splatters of blood were on his face and clothes. His hands were covered in blood and an oddly content smile was on his face.

When they walked in the the meeting room, Akame went in first.

"Akame! What happened? Why did y'all take so long?!" Najenda asked clearly she had been worrying.

"Nothing happened. Or at least nothing bad. Neither of us were hurt."

"Then why did you take so long? It's been hours!"

"Look at Tatsumi, it might give you an idea. Good night."

When she walked out they turned to look at Tatsumi, noticing his 'condition'.

Najenda sighed. "Tatsumi I'll let this pass for now, and I should've told you earlier, but there is a time limit on the missions. Passing the time limit will get you in trouble. And besides, we're not supposed to have 'fun' killing!" She sent a glare to Leone who, with and akward smile, quickly left the room.

"Is that so? That's kinda disappointing... But sorry, I didn't know. It won't happen again." With another sign Najenda left the room. A few seconds later Tatsumi followed.

* * *

 **I know. I know. This isn't NEARLY a as long as the other chapters. Sorry 'bout that. I'll try to make the next chapter longer but no guarantees.**

 **In case you hadn't noticed, Tatsumi sadist nature will show through occasionally...**

 **And I wanted to get this out there but, I read the manga before a watched the anime. So, from my perspective, Tatsumi is the only one able to land a solid hit on Esdeath, rather than someone who took on a giant Teigu and, against all odds, won. So there's that.**

 **Later~**


	5. Sword of Blood

**A sneak peek of Tatsumi's days with Esdeath and her army! Yay!**

 **I've _finally_** **updated Kill the Deciever and Red-Eyed Sleeping Dragon.**

 **Thank you for your patience!**

 **It's 2016! Yaaaaaaaaayyyy!**

* * *

 _Around three years after Tatsumi started his work with Esdeath, Honest had Esdeath's army go on a desert campaign to the south. As far as the eye can see, sand dunes rolled across the the land. Occasionally a cactus or dried bush could be seen but not a single tree was in sight. Large rocks jutted out of the ground. The occasional animal could be seen fleeing._

 _The blazing sun showed no mercy to the thousands of sweating soldiers, marching. Walking through the army of armored soldiers, would allow you to hear exhausted panting or low-voiced complaining._

 _At the head of the mass of people, 5 people walked. At the front was a cold-looking woman with a sadistic grin that never ceased. Another was a blonde boy with a flute and devil-like horns along with a tail. One more was a serious looking old man. Another was a man with no visible pupils, and a dual-bladed battle axe strapped to his back. The last was a youth with a claymore at his side, looking bored. Unlike the warriors behind them, they didn't look tired at all._

 _While a mortified guide led them in a seemingly random direction, the sound of an armored knight collapsing from the heat and exhaustion could be heard. Some of the others around him looked to him, expecting him to get up, only to find him not moving at all. A few others had dropped earlier. However Esdeath didn't bother stopping, leaving the unfortunate victims of a long journey in the sun to die._

 _No mercy came from the Empire's Strongest. In fact, she was planning to just move on ignoring the half-dead soldier before River convinced her otherwise._

 _"Esdeath-sama, if we keep going at this rate, there won't be any soldiers to fight the Southern tribe with."_

 _Esdeath actually paused, before she let her subjects rest. "AT EASE." Immediately her army collapsed, relieved sighs could be heard along with a few conversations. No one made a move to help the fallen soldier, instead made a wide circle around him, as to avoid him._

 _Esdeath even made a few giant ice pillars and the soldiers crowded around them. Any melted frost was instantly licked up._

 _"U-um what do I do?" Their guide was looking absolutely horrified at the thought of no longer having a use, even if briefly._

 _Esdeath turned to him,"Were you not listening? I said,_ At Ease _." The man paled before simply sitting down. Esdeath clearly wasn't very fond of the man for multiple reasons._

 _Esdeath herself probably would have been exhausted from the heat if it wasn't for the fact that she purposely made the air around her, and her top subjects, cold. Her favorite, Tatsumi, would've as well, having some of her blood running through her veins. The other three wouldn't have been nearly as effected._

 _They had left the horses in the capital, and any other mount available was turned down by Esdeath._

 _After approximately ten minutes of resting, Esdeath sent scouts out in the direction the guide was leading them in. Half an hour later they came back, having sighted the enemy camp._

 _With how close they were to the enemy, her soldiers prepared for battle. The five climbed up a large boulder several meters away. At the top they could see a large city of sandstone buildings, along with people going about their daily lives. A few guards could be seen. Every one of them had heavily tanned skin and wore as as little clothing as possible without being naked._

 _Most would wonder why they would attack a city rather than a military base, but it was all the same to Esdeath._

 _"Tatsumi, bring me a ranked official from that city, alive." He nodded understanding what she wanted. Rather than his usual black cloak, her wore a beat-up beige cloak. One you could buy anywhere. It was more effective camouflage here. "Be quick." She knew he couldn't handle such heat for long._

* * *

Two groans filled with annoyance were let out.

"I'm working with the arrogant _shrimp_?" Tatsumi growled.

"Hey! I'd much rather work with anyone else! It's the Boss's orders though!" Mine yelled in return. Najenda had just informed them of their new partnerships... Needless to say neither side was happy.

"Why do I have to work with her?! I'd much rather work with just about anyone else!" Tatsumi got along well enough with the other members of Night Raid, if you don't count a few mishaps with Leone and Lubbock, but Mine always got on his nerves. She, quite frankly, reminded him of Esdeath's Three Beasts. Except all of the qualities he didn't mind were thrown out, and her goals and values were the complete opposite.

"It's just one thing after another isn't it?" Leone teased. She tried and failed to hide a giggle when Mine shot her a glare.

""Shut up!"" Tatsumi and Mine yelled in unison. Then they started glaring at each other. Leone looked to be having trouble composing herself, as she tried to stop laughing.

"It's only temporary, okay?" Najenda said trying to prevent a fight.

"I don't care. I refuse to work with an arrogant little girl who thinks she's superior." Tatsumi said, still not relenting his glare.

Mine opened her mouth to reply, but was silenced when the door opened.

Akame walked into the room and eyed the occupants, stopping at Tatsumi. "What's going on?"

"Tatsumi and Mine are going to be working together! But they don't seem to like the arrangement..." Najenda supplied.

She narrowed her eyes, but went to the kitchen anyway. Whether It was to snack or to cook, no one knew.

"Anyway just work with it." Najenda told them. Mine snorted and left the room with a arrogant cock to her head. Tatsumi left too, but sent a death glare at Leone.

"What? It's funny." She said when Najenda raised an eyebrow at her. Najenda just sighed and sat down to wait for breakfast.

* * *

Tatsumi and Mine walked through the Capital.

"Hmm... Now that I look closer, there's a lot of sullen expressions." Tatsumi commented. He had switched back to his 'bumpkin persona' and now made a false comment. The unhappy emotions were obvious from the start.

"Well yeah. They're all under a reign of terror." Mine stated. She walked around in the front leading Tatsumi.

"I know you don't have a wanted poster, but is it still okay to walk in broad daylight?" Tatsumi asked. He decided stupid questions might give more information.

"It's not like we'll be arrested. Anyway, we have a mission to complete."

 _Mission? I didn't hear about a mission..._

"Is that why you brought me along?" He questioned.

"Yeah! Let's start with the inspection of the city's condition!" She said raising a fist to the air.

Tatsumi raised an eyebrow in question, but went along with it.

"Yeah!"

What followed after decreased his respect for Mine by droves.

First was a crepe shop. Mine ordered one and seemed to enjoy it greatly, while Tatsumi only got a simple drink.

 _This girl... Don't tell me..._

Next was a lingerie shop. Tatsumi refused to enter. From the door however, he could see Mine questioning herself on whether or not she should get some. Despite this a content smile was on her face.

 _Is she..?_

Then there were clothes shops. Mine tried on any pink dress she saw, and asked of his opinion. He merely glared at her each time she asked. Afterwards she tried to force him to hold her bags, but Tatsumi decided to dump them all on the floor and walk away. Mine glared at him but continued on her way.

 _It's official. She's trying to use me as a pack mule. I think I'll just go back to the base._

He walked through the streets eventually stopping at a large crowd.

In the front were bloodied bodies. Every single one was still alive. Hanging on crosses for a slow death. Some gritted their teeth so they didn't cry out, while some screamed in pain and humiliation. Most were minus a limb or two. The few who had all their limbs, had bruises all along their body.

As he stared up at them, he heard a voice.

"Are you suprised? Public executions are a common sighting in the Capital." He looked to his side, and there stood Mine.

"It's because the Minister says it's okay... It was because of the Minister that the current emperor won the battle for succession."

Then one scream in pain, and Mine narrowed her eyes in determination.

"But, I won't be like them. I'll live and see this war to the end!"

 _The Prime Minister, huh? But still, Mine seems to be heavily underestimating the Empire. If it was so weak, the other countries would have already destroyed it. Then again, if they find a way to take out Esdeath-sama and Great General Budo, then conquering will be considerably easier... Esdeath-sama please come back soon. I'm not sure how you want me to deal with this..._

* * *

Immediately after they got to the base, they were sent on a mission. Everyone went, with the exception of Najenda, to kill a blood relative of the Prime Minister. The guards were guilty too, so punishment in the form of Teigu wielding assassins was coming.

Currently, Tatsumi and Mine were hidden in trees a while away from the compound. Tatsumi was given binoculars, but he didn't bother, he's been in that place far to much to his liking.

Mine studied the distance between them and the compound, realizing it was to far, and that she'd have to wait.

Tatsumi knew of Pumpkin's abilities, Esdeath explaining it to him in great detail after Najenda defected, so he knew without a 'pinch' the sniper Teigu was at a set level.

Mine's concentration was commendable, but Tatsumi had seen better among Esdeath's army. When she announced the target had walked out, he replied merely for appearances.

Then a bullet of light ran through the wind and directly into the target's head, then out the other side. None of the bystanders suffered anything physical.

 _Hmm... She's a nice shot I suppose._

Tatsumi mentally snorted in annoyance when Mine said, "You know... I'm a genius sniper."

Then the guards ran out. Tatsumi narrowed his eyes when he only counted four.

 _Didn't Najenda say there were five?_

The masked martial artists ran straight into the rest of Night Raid.

With a smirk, Leone bashed her fists together as she prepared for a one-sided beat-down.

Mine continuously complained about the path to the meet-up point.

 _Those guys were from the Koukenji Temple right? Well, it's not like it matters with Akame in that group. I just need to figure out where the fifth one went._

Mine earned a lit the respect from him when she explained how she hated people who abuse their power. With what she said, there was only one question to ask, but she answered before he could think about the pros and cons.

"As a special little treat, I'll tell you a bit about my past." She didn't notice, or just ignored, the look of annoyance and suprise that flashed on his face.

"I was born and raised on the western border of the Empire, and half my blood is foreign. I was mercilessly ridiculed, and nobody accepted me. My childhood was made of misery." Then she explained how the Revolutionary Army made alliances with the other races, and how if they won, no one would suffer like her.

Never again, will I let there be any form of discrimination!"

The moment, however, was ruined when her 'true' motives surfaced.

"And because of my big role in the Revolution, I'll get a big reward and live like a celebrity! Ahahah!" She started laughing weirdly as they continued on.

 _Do I respect her or humiliate her? At this point, those are the only two options I'll accept._

"Al, right we're almost at he meeting point. That mean mission accomplished!"

"Missions aren't finished until you give the report." He replied without thought. That was the way Esdeath worked. If you went against her words, you'll be let off with torture if you're lucky.

"Hmph. Those are Akame's words, right?" The moment she started talking a shadow appeared behind her.

It was the last Koukenji guard.

Tatsumi narrowed his eyes, before, in an instant, grabbing Mine by the collar of her shirt and throwing her a little ways away.

"What are you-," She started before realizing what happened. She gritted her teeth and let loose a rain of light at the foe, but he dodged every bullet.

Seeing her 'plan' wasn't working, Tatsumi drew Minakami. Seeing the somewhat desperate situation he figured he should end this quickly.

 _I didn't plan to show my Trump Card so early on, but it will gain their trust, and I can't afford anymore suspicion either._

He pointed Minakami's tip at the former instructor, and the gem on its hilt turned blood red. Instantly, the instructor stopped moving. He could be heard struggling to breath, but it didn't matter, in a second he was riddled with holes.

Mine let her muscles relax as she turned to newest recruit. "How did you..?"

"That's Minakami's Trump Card I think it's called. I can control blood." He added the 'I think' because of his supposed cluelessness. _What I didn't tell her is how often I use Minakami in the torture chamber._

"Urgh... That's a cool trump card, not as cool as Pumpkin's of course. Well, I can't help but be a little impressed." She had a small blush from the embarrassment of having to be saved.

 _Ugh. Girls are to simple. Then again, women are to complicated. Well, I can't compare all women to Esdeath-sama... That would be a very scary world..._

"Sure, sure."

At that moment Akame's group appeared from the trees.

"Ah, it's already over. I guess we didn't need to rush over here after all." Leone said with a chuckle.

Akame was staring at the Swiss cheese look alike, also known as the corpse of the former instructor. Rather than look like he was killed by the oh-so-obvious bullet holes, he looked like he was suffocated...

* * *

 **I promise that sneak peek wasn't just a little addition. It will have purpose later on.**

 **Unlike before I now know _exactly_ where I'm going with this. Where and how I plan to end this. ****Although I still need to figure out how I plan to end Red-Eyed Sleeping Dragon.**

 **So now Tatsumi's getting along better (slightly) with Mine...**

 **I find it funny how Kill the Deciever and Red-Eyed Sleeping Dragon are almost complete opposites. It's very interesting writing one and then writing the other. I usually skim read my earlier chapters to make sure I'm not messing anything up.**

 **Review please!**


	6. Illusion of Ice

**Special: My faithful reviewer, TravisUmbra, always makes me laugh with their reviews. Shame he doesn't have an account, but he's still funny. And no, I do not have Spectator :P**

* * *

During his years under Esdeath, Tatsumi learned about enemies to the Empire. He learned of the Northern Tribe, but that was irrelevant, they were completely demolished by now. He learned of the Western Tribe, a mass of hardy people, typically with hair some shade of red or orange. Mine was a rarity, with pink hair, but she was still recognizable as one of the Western Tribe.

The Eastern Tribe, they were one of the many Esdeath had eradicated in her career. They were weak, according to Esdeath. She had easily destroyed their entire civilization before she had even met Tatsumi.

He remembered the Southern Tribe. It was the hardest battle he had ever fought, even harder than hiding from a suspicious Akame aiming for his secrets…

He also learned of the Revolutionary Army. According to Great General Budo, they were foolish people trying to destroy a mighty Empire. Tatsumi never really understood his ideals… He hated the corruption that wove its way through the Empire, yet he protected the cause of it.

All that was known about the Revolutionary Army had been drilled into him. He could recite all known base locations, both the ones that were destroyed and the ones that weren't, any Teigu the other side had that they knew of, most high-ranking officials of the Army, as well as multiple not-as-important things, in his sleep.

However, the criminals in the Capital? There were way too many. Other than Night Raid, Tatsumi didn't bother with the others.

While the new target was a former Imperial executioner, with Honest practically ruling, there were quite a few executioners, so it shouldn't be much of a surprise when Tatsumi didn't know who Zank the Beheader was.

"Zank… Who?" He stood in the meeting room with the rest of the members of Night Raid. Najenda was sitting in her throne-like-chair, while everyone else stood at ready for orders.

Mine shot him an annoyed glare, then started ranting, "You don't know who Zank the Beheader is? You _are_ a country bumpkin! Ha!"

Tatsumi replied with an angered growl, "Hey! Just because I don't remember the name of some psycho criminal doesn't make me a bumpkin!" He had contemplated multiple times, what he would do to her if Esdeath captured her. However, since his general was up in the North, and he had been ordered to be 'friendly' with the infamous assassins, his wishes won't be coming true anytime soon.

"Zank the Beheader is a former Imperial executioner. He went insane after Honest took over, since he was forced to behead innocent people. Pleas for mercy don't exactly help your sanity." Mine explained, sounding like she had recited the exact lines multiple times.

"Anyway, he seems to have shown up in the Capital recently. We've received a request to eliminate him." Najenda explained to her subordinates. "But, apparently he stole the warden's Teigu before fleeing, so prepare for a challenging battle."

 _Hmm. The way she's talking, she'll probably send all of us out… I guess that 'rule' will come to play now…_

When two Teigu users fight…

 _Oh~, I wonder how long he can last… Esdeath-sama said that if they're already insane, then it's harder to break them..._

Only one can come out alive…

 _ **It was an absolute rule.**_

"Let's wipe out that scum!" He yelled with a fist in the air, switching to his fake naive side.

"Yeah. All of y'all are going in pairs. Be ready to go by nightfall."

 _But I'm ready to go right now…_

Minakami's gem lit up briefly, scolding him, before returning to normal.

 _It's not like I'm the most patient person in the world. You, of all sentient beings, know that best… Even better than Esdeath-sama..._

* * *

The day passed quicker than he expected, and soon, a blood-red moon hovered above the Earth.

Tatsumi and Akame walked through the deserted cobblestone streets of the Capital. Despite the infinite number of buildings they passed, not a single one had light shining through a window.

An ominous air had settled around the Capital, and in the distance, a man stood.

His hulking form beared down on the assassins of Night Raid, a psychotic smile split his face in two, and a third eye rested on his head.

"Serial killers, and now professional killers… Happy, happy… I wonder what kind of face they'll make…"

* * *

Tatsumi was forced to walk a few paces away from his red-eyed companion, as every time he came an inch or two closer, her Crimson glare was leveled onto him.

The red moon illuminated her eyes in a mysterious way, but that just made it more unnerving…

"... I brought snacks…"

 _She finally decides to talk, and it's because of food… Well, considering how much of a glutton she is, I guess I should be flattered that she'd even consider sharing..._

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not hungry."

She sent him a weird look, then looked away.

 _Know what? I've had enough of awkward silence, I'm gonna take a little break._

With the excuse of taking a piss, he silently crossed the alleyway he had walked into.

He leaned against the wall with a relieved sigh.

 _Peace… I almost don't even want to go back…_

In the next instant his eyes shot open. It was so familiar…

Such a familiar aura.

He looked to his right, seeing familiar icy beauty.

Esdeath, stood staring at him.

He stared in surprise at the sight. Wasn't Esdeath still in the North?

Her general uniform was neat and pristine as always. Tatsumi sometimes wondered how, despite her somewhat messy fighting style, not a drop of blood made its way to stain it…

Her normal icy blue eyes bore into him. Except, they didn't have the touch of affection they usually did when they stared at him.

Her hair, as always, swished as she walked. Cold blue, just like her eyes, except it wasn't.

Black streaked through her hair.

That was the first sign something was off.

Tatsumi knew, Esdeath would never dye her hair. Mostly because she saw no point in it, but also because he had complimented how unique her hair was, multiple times, and he knew she loved it when he complimented her.

The second sign, was that, there wasn't the familiar vague feeling. The demon's blood flowed through both of their veins. Since it's being rested in two bodies, it always told them when the other half of its blood was near.

There was no such feeling.

Tatsumi gritted his teeth, and drew Minakami.

It felt wrong to point his sword at his general, even though he knew it wasn't her…

 _Focus, Tatsumi. Ignore her face. This isn't the woman who befriended you and taught you right from wrong and the joys of being strong. This isn't the person who saved you… She's a_ ** _Fake_.**

And with that last thought, he lunged forward.

The Esdeath-look-alike dodged his first two attacks: a stab towards the neck and a downward slash.

A smile stretched her face to an almost inhuman size as she weaved through Minakami's blade.

Tatsumi found himself growling in frustration, _grr… Just take your stupid illusion down so I can make you suffer!_ He thought, having already figured out that this wasn't quite reality.

He saw fake-Esdeath's smile grow a little wider, before suddenly her figure shifted.

In her place stood a wickedly smiling man, bloodlust pouring from him in waves. From his sleeves came to blades, and then the fight truly began.

* * *

 _Tatsumi… Isn't back yet..._

Akame had found herself worrying for said comrade after ten minutes of complete silence. She knew he was strong, but she couldn't keep herself worry-free.

She had often wondered just how strong he was… But refused to spar just incase his 'other personality' might get in the way…

She found herself finding it hard to believe that he had split personalities. His backstory made sense, and his background check had no holes, however, she noticed how sometimes when he made a sad or regret-filled face, it seemed like he was acting…

His fighting style seemed extremely familiar. As if she had fought him before. In fact, he did fight very similarly to someone she's fought before: Esdeath's assassin.

Nothing was known about him except for the fact that he was loyal to Esdeath, and Esdeath alone.

His trademark ice-covered scarf, and mask were the only things to identify him with. His mask looked like a laughing demon, and his fighting-style and battle-personality were quite similar to his mask, actually.

His sadistic personality definitely matched that of a demon.

His ability to use Esdeath's Teigu had warranted many concerns among the Revolutionary Army officials, when she had reported about it the first time they fought. Thankfully though, it seemed he was the only other person able to create ice from nothing.

She had fought him a few times, and out of those times, she almost managed to win four of them, but each and every time she sent the finishing blow his way, something happened to prevent it.

Allies came, and retrieved him.

And as she had almost killed him, he had almost killed her. Three times, her allies were forced to step in, otherwise they'd they lose her.

They had fought twice, with neither party winning, and one side being forced to retreat.

His scarf was actually extremely similar to Tatsumi's… And Tatsumi was so very similar to him… And his Teigu…

Was the same as what the assassin had used.

* * *

Tatsumi had quickly turned the tide of the battle.

The moment the Esdeath-look-alike became the hulking form of a psycho former-executioner, any resentment he held for the illusion, increased ten-fold.

With the appearance of his general no longer bothering him, he let his anger come forward, and vowed to kill him in the most painful way possible.

He actually hoped Akame didn't find find him while he was fighting the man he had quickly identified as Zank. He wanted to torture him, and make him beg for mercy, just because he had used his Teigu to make an illusion of Tatsumi's general.

And because of that he would pay.

Tatsumi had discovered that Zank's Teigu was called Spectator, and that it had five sights, according to Zank, who, surprisingly enough, had talking for a hobby.

The illusion sight, the one that pissed him off, was probably Zank's favorite. Another sight allowed him to study facial expressions and body language to read Tatsumi's mind. Again, it pissed him off.

 _Stop reading my goddamn mind! I just want to torture you and make you beg for mercy! Let me start already, Akame will be coming any minute now and I don't want her to finish you off!_

With those angered thoughts, Tatsumi sent a slash of water Zank's way, which was dodged with a psychotic laugh.

 _Know what? Screw you. Let's see how much you like ice!_

With his mind made up, he readied his sword to charge.

 _He said my facial expressions… I wonder if it'll affect his ability to read my movements if he can't read my face…_

In the second he thought that up, his face went blank.

As he lunged forward, unbeknownst to Zank, a single thought went through Tatsumi's mind…

 _I hope you hate the cold._

* * *

After Akame's realization, she rushed off to find her comrade, who might not be her comrade…

As she silently ran from roof to roof, she looked around for any flash of brown or blue.

She hoped to hear a noise. Any kind of noise that would give his location away, clothes billowing in the wind, footsteps, or even the sound of fighting.

* * *

At first Zank thought that Tatsumi had made his mind completely blank, he quickly realized it was only his face that was made blank.

As his Teigu told him where the boy's sword would cut, he dodged. Then he was froze in realization. Quite literally.

Ice covered his entire bottom half, and slowly spread upwards. Water licked his face, as if to tease him, before freezing and covering his upper half with slowly spreading ice.

"Cold, cold… You got me got me good, kid." Zank said loudly, his smile was still there despite the rather desperate situation he was in.

Tatsumi made sure that the ice only covered Zank's limbs and anchored him to the ground.

He chipped away at carefully, before outright stabbing through the chipped area.

Zank started to panic and let out his first scream since his days with the Empire.

"How dare you… To make such an illusion will have you paying a high price, Beheader."

* * *

She looked around, desperate for answers, when her plea was answered by a sharp scream that resounded throughout the area.

Quickly, she rushed to the source of the noise.

Soon following the first, pained shrieks and desperate shouts sounded out, leading her to the fight.

It took her longer than she would've liked to get there.

When she came to an empty courtyard, she finally realized that it wasn't Tatsumi screaming in pain.

With Ogre, Tatsumi had used clean and precise strikes, showing experience, to give Ogre the most pain.

With Zank, it was none of that.

If his death glare was anything to go by, Tatsumi was pissed. Maybe because of that, Tatsumi didn't bother with the routine he used with Ogre.

Fast, strong, almost _sloppy_ strikes were sent Zank's way. It seemed this had been going on for a while…

Zank was on the floor, bleeding, muttering incoherently. His Teigu had been stripped from him, and thrown several meters away.

Tatsumi was currently stomping Zank's ribs to pieces.

Without any smile to say he was enjoying it, he growled in annoyance before speaking, "Oh come on! Don't break so soon! You're gonna feel a world of pain, for what you did!"

Akame bent over to pick up Spectator, before watching Tatsumi vent his frustration on Zank.

"Tatsumi stop. He's suffered enough!" She yelled to him.

He paused and glared at her, before actually stopping.

He walked past her and muttered something under his breath. It almost sounded like "I'd kill anyone interrupting me, except for you." but she brushed it off because it wasn't something he'd normally say.

Drawing Murasame, then ending mumbling Zank, she turned back to look at Tatsumi, but he had already left…

 **Oh my gosh! Akame's getting really close to figuring out Tatsumi's secret!**

 **Good luck Tatsumi!**

 **Review please! I want to know of your opinions this chapter!**


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